21 y.o Mitch Laddie has played guitar seriously since he was 13. He first met Walter Trout at a gig in Sunderland in the mid 2000's. Walter was impressed, asked Mitch for a CD and soon after invited Mitch to guest at his 2006 Colne gig in. Mitch and Walter regularly play UK gigs together. Mitch's first band was Vanilla Moon in 2006, becoming The Mitch Laddie Trio in 2008, with the original Vanilla Moon bass player Rhian Wilkinson and drummer Lee "Cliffy" Clifford. The band is based in County Durham but Mitch prefers to be linked to Newcastle.The trio have had considerable success on both the MCC Rally and festival circuit playing a mixture of originals and covers. His playing is influenced by greats like SRV (Mitch's fav album is SRV's "Texas Flood"), Eric Johnson, Hendrix, Eric Gales, John Mayer, Robin Trower, Peter Green and many more, but Mitch has his own unique style. When asked about the type of music his band play, Mitch said "Blues rock of course. But we are prettily heavily funk influenced and I’m quite into my fusion and jazz too. I’d say we generally just gather our influences and throw them all together and see what happens. "This Time Around" has soul, jazz, blues, rock, fusion and ten of the tracks are Laddie originals. On the cover notes to Mitch's great "Burning Bridges" album, Walter Trout wrote “I first met Mitch Laddie when he was a young lad of sixteen years. I heard him play his guitar and was knocked out by the authority, command and finesse he displayed. It was beyond his years – he sounded like somebody who’d been at it for forty years!" Speaking about blues music in general, Mitch says "Even if players are similar, they’ve still got their own touch that makes the hairs on your arms stand up. It’s not just the guitar side of it; the diva blues singers do it too. It’s the raw emotion and the feeling that is put into it and you just don’t get that in other types of music. The passion is always there. It’s real". Mitch is another of the new breed of young British blues stars in the making. He is an exceptional talent and a guy who is heading for recognition as one of the British guitar greats. "This Time Around" is HR by A.O.O.F.C. Buy Mitch's "Burning Bridges" album and support real music [All tracks @ 320 Kbps: File size =140 Mb]

All songs composed by Mitch Laddie except Track 6 by James Brown, and Track 12 by BB King

MUSICIANS

Mitch Laddie - Guitar, Vocals
Rhian Wilkinson - Bass
Lee 'Cliffy' Clifford - Drums
Walter Trout & Band on "Rock Me Baby" recorded live with Walter Trout's band at the Opera House in York in October 2009

24.4.12

Karl Morgan is an Australian blues/soul guitarist, singer and songwriter, based in Austin, Texas. Although he cites Eric Clapton as his main influence his style is also influenced by artists like Stevie Ray Vaughan, Jimi Hendrix, and many other blues and soul artists, including Stevie Wonder, BB King, Albert King, Freddie King, Aretha Franklin, The Allman Brothers Band, Bonnie Raitt, Taj Mahal, and Al Green. Karl released "Talkin' With the Hands' in 2007 and released his second album , 'Burning Heart' in October of 2011. Karl and his band constantly gig in and around Austin, including several shows during SXSW 2012.

Karl Morgan will be accused of sounding like Eric Clapton and SRV, but he also has his own unique guitar style. There are two many reviews accusing artists of aping guitarists like Rory Gallagher, SRV, Eric Clapton, and God knows who else. Who influenced EC or SRV? There is a difference between copying these artists note for note and being influenced by an artist. That's the evolution of the blues, and Karl Morgan is definitely no "rip-off merchant". He is a great vocalist with distinctive phrasing. He writes original songs with good lyrics, and his skilful and intelligent playing is in the "less is more" style. No songs on this album are used as a base for any histrionic guitar solos. Karl is not a "showy" player and although his guitar is the driving force throughout the album, he is never overbearing. Karl's tone and balance is exceptional. His music contains folk, rock, Chicago style blues rock, soul blues, and plenty of funk, but fundamentally he plays good old fashioned electric guitar with flair and originality, a quality lacking in many of today's so called guitarists. The album is HR by A.O.O.F.C. Buy Karl's "Burning Heart" album and support real music [All tracks @ 320 Kbps: File size = 108 Mb]

21.4.12

British singer/guitarist Ian Siegal (born Ian Berry, 1971) is now an established name in contemporary blues. From the time he was just a young kid he listened to artists like Little Richard and Muddy Watters, and became hooked on blues music. Ian started out as a roadie and busker, eventually becoming a highly respected blues artist. In 2007 he followed up his first album ‘Meat & Potatoes’ with ‘Swagger’. Ian's "Broadside" album made it to no.1 in MOJO magazine's best blues album award in 2009. Ian Siegal and his band play dynamic, and thrilling raw blues and rock’n' roll songs, played in both the Chicago and Memphis blues styles. "I Shall Not Be Moved" was recorded live at The Paradiso, Amsterdam, The Netherlands on January 29th, 2008 and was originally broadscast on the online concert channel Fabchannel as a live video and audio webcast [All tracks @ 256 Kbps: 2 x rar files: Pt.1 (CD ONE) = 108 Mb, & Pt.2 (CD TWO) = 101 Mb] Buy Ian's superb "Meat & Potatoes" album, and his "Broadside" is a "must hear" album

Ian Siegal (born Ian Berry, 1971) is a British blues singer and guitarist, whose style reflects the more rootsy side of the genre, drawing on influences such as Howlin' Wolf, Muddy Waters, Bo Diddley, Son House, Junior Kimbrough and Tom Waits. In the late 1980s, Siegal dropped out of art college and went busking in Germany. He has been active on the UK blues scene for many years, and after two European tours supporting Bill Wyman's Rhythm Kings in 2003 and 2004,began to receive significant attention in Europe and further afield, particularly since the release of his album, Swagger, the follow-up to his critically acclaimed Meat & Potatoes. These recordings also feature guitarist Matt Schofield, and received praise in the music press, including an entry in the Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings, and was Mojo magazine's second best blues album of 2007. In 2008 the album The Dust was released. Unlike the previous albums it contained mainly solo performances. In 2009, Siegal released another album together with his band members, Andy Graham (bass) and Nikolaj Bjerre (drums). This album, Broadside, was voted "Blues Album of the Year 2009" by Mojo. His 2011 release, The Skinny, was recorded in North Mississippi with Cody Dickinson of the North Mississippi Allstars as record producer and he also played on the album. Backing Siegal were the sons of some notable Mississippi blues men, including on guitar Robert Kimbrough, on guitar and bass Garry Burnside, and on drums Rod Bland. Also guesting were Alvin Youngblood Hart and Duwayne Burnside.

20.4.12

Bill Wyman's Rhythm Kings are a Blues-rock band founded and led by the Rolling Stones' bass guitarist Bill Wyman. Together with his lifelong musical partner Terry Taylor, The "Dirty Boys" duo produce, arrange and compose original material for the award winning band. The Rhythm Kings are renowned for their popular live performances as they frequently tour through Europe and the United Kingdom. The group has conducted only one tour in the United States, during the middle of 2001. The touring unit often is compared to the Ringo Starr All-Starr Band for its somewhat revolving door of membership as established musicians move from project to project.

After leaving the Rolling Stones, Wyman said, "I thought, maybe I should do some music on the side, but not heavy; I don't want to have to worry about charts, image and all that crap. It's not gonna be a career move—I'm just gonna do it for the fun. We were just gonna do a blues duo and call ourselves the Dirt Boys." Bill was determined to reintroduce older music to newer generations. Bill said the music "ranged from—all the way back to the '30s and upwards. To achieve his aim, Bill loosely organized a group of British musicians who shared his affection for rock 'n' roll, country, blues, jazz, jive and various other music styles which had influenced him. The musical influences for the band came from artists like Louis Armstrong, Billie Holiday, Fats Waller, Ray Charles, Louis Jordan and Cab Calloway. Bill persuaded artists like the legendary soul-jazz/R&B singer and organ player Georgie Fame, drummer Graham Broad and vocalist Beverley Skeete to join his new band. Other great artists to play with Bill included guitarists Albert Lee, Andy Fairweather-Low, and Terry Taylor. Other occasional members have included George Harrison, Eric Clapton, his Stones buddy Mick Taylor, Nicky Hopkins, Peter Frampton, and many other music giants. Bill said that "What I found was that, when we started doing this music, whether it was a song by Fats Waller, Sam Cooke, Jackie Wilson, Chuck Berry, or whatever it was, nine times out of ten, the original piece of music was played by a double bass, not a bass guitar. So I had to change my style and play with my thumb instead of a guitar pick in order to sound as much like a double bass as possible with the way I played, but also the notes I played. I don't know how many times people have listened to the records and asked me, 'Who's playing the double bass?' No, it's me—I'm playing it with my bass guitar, but I'm playing it in a different way. I discovered that I could write songs in the old styles, because I would analyze the way they did the arrangements, the way the instrumentation sounded, the way people sang and the slang they used for the lyrics. And in the end, the track, when we'd finish it, would sound like a song from the '30s, '40s or '50s. It's almost like an archeological dig into music". "Groovin'" has been described as "Giving you the blues the way they are meant to be played, with honesty, heart and outstanding musicianship." A special album, and HR by A.O.O.F.C. Listen to Bill's 1982 s/t album and Bill Wyman's Rhythm Kings "Anyway The Wind Blows" album [All tracks @ 320 Kbps: File size = 122 Mb]

21 y.o Mitch Laddie has played guitar seriously since he was 13. He first met Walter Trout at a gig in Sunderland in the mid 2000's. Walter was impressed, asked Mitch for a CD and soon after invited Mitch to guest at his 2006 Colne gig in. Mitch and Walter regularly play UK gigs together. Mitch's first band was Vanilla Moon in 2006, becoming The Mitch Laddie Trio in 2008, with the original Vanilla Moon bass player Rhian Wilkinson and drummer Lee "Cliffy" Clifford. The band is based in County Durham but Mitch prefers to be linked to Newcastle.The trio have had considerable success on both the MCC Rally and festival circuit playing a mixture of originals and covers. His playing is influenced by greats like SRV (Mitch's fav album is SRV's "Texas Flood"), Eric Johnson, Hendrix, Eric Gales, John Mayer, Robin Trower, Peter Green and many more, but Mitch has his own unique style. When asked about the type of music his band play, Mitch said"Blues rock of course. But we are prettily heavily funk influenced and I’m quite into my fusion and jazz too. I’d say we generally just gather our influences and throw them all together and see what happens." "Burning Bridges" has soul, jazz, blues, rock, and fusion and all the tracks are Laddie originals. On the cover notes to "Burning Bridges" Walter Trout writes “I first met Mitch Laddie when he was a young lad of sixteen years. I heard him play his guitar and was knocked out by the authority, command and finesse he displayed. It was beyond his years – he sounded like somebody who’d been at it for forty years!" Speaking about blues music in general, Mitch says "Even if players are similar, they’ve still got their own touch that makes the hairs on your arms stand up. It’s not just the guitar side of it; the diva blues singers do it too. It’s the raw emotion and the feeling that is put into it and you just don’t get that in other types of music. The passion is always there. It’s real". Mitch is another of the new breed of young British blues stars in the making. He is an exceptional talent and a guy who is heading for recognition as one of the British guitar greats. "Burning Bridges" is HR by A.O.O.F.C. Buy Mitch's "This Time Around" album and support real music [All tracks @ 192 Kbps: File size = 84.4 Mb]

TRACKS

1.Time Is Running Away
2.Paper In Your Pocket
3.Take A Bite
4.Would You?
5.What Are You Living For?
6.Changing Tides & Burning Bridges
7.Gone
8.Gettin’ It Right
9.Inner City Blues
10.Give You The World
11.Mr Johnson Revisited

15.4.12

Raised on Chicago's Southside, Jimmy D. Lane's blood line runs deep in the tradition of blues. Son of the late-great, blues legend Jimmy Rogers, he's got the skills to prove it. The usual comparisons to Jimi and SRV will be made here, but Eric Clapton, after playing with Jimmy on a tribute album to Jimmy's father, Jimmy Rogers, said that Jimmy Lane is an "incredible guitarist." Jimmy played all the instrumentation on this obscure album. Vocals are a bit indistinct at times, but not enough to spoil your enjoyment of this album. A number of these songs later reappeared on the "Long Gone" CD, including it's title track, along with "Shake, Shiver and Ache", "Whiskey" and "Obsession Baby". Jimmy's "Long Gone" album is @ JDL/LOGO[All tracks @ 192-320 Kbps: File size = 61.6 Mb]

Lane was born on 4 July 1965 in Chicago, to the musician Jimmy Rogers and his wife Dorothy. In his childhood, he got to know many older bluesmen who worked with his father, including Muddy Waters, Howlin' Wolf, Willie Mabon, Little Walter and Albert King. Lane would say years later, "I feel blessed and fortunate to have known all those cats and I do not take it for granted." At the age of 40, Jimmy D. Lane has already led quite a full life. The musicians he knows makes for an impressive resume. He has worked with Eric Clapton, Mick Jagger, Jim Keltner, Keith Richards, B.B. King, Van Morrison, Jonny Lang, Gary Moore, Double Trouble, Taj Mahal, Stephen Stilles, Jeff Healey, Jimmie Lee Robinson, Lowell Fulson, and Snooky Pryor, Kim Wilson, Pinetop Perkins, Johnny ‘Big Moose’ Walker, Johnnie Johnson, Kim Wilson, Robert Plant, Jimmy Page, Harry Hypolite, George ‘Wild Child’ Butler, David ‘HoneyBoy’ Edwards, Weepin’ Willie Robinson, Little Hatch, Nancy Bryan, Willie Kent, Henry Gray, Lazy Lester and Eomot RaSun. He has also worked with such blues greats such as Sam Lay, Hubert Sumlin, Carey Bell, Dave Meyers and his father, the legendary Jimmy Rogers. Born July 4th, 1965 in Chicago, he grew up in a household where he became acquainted with a many famous Chicago bluesmen. Muddy Waters, Howlin' Wolf, Willie Mabon, Little Walter and Albert King, to name a few, would all stop by the house to visit the "old man." Coming from this environment has instilled in Lane the deepest respect for elder statesmen of the blues. "I feel blessed and fortunate, to have known all those cats, and I do not take it for granted." At the age of eight, he began playing his dad's guitar, which he wasn't supposed to do. "I would break a string and put it back in the case like he wasn't going to discover it," Lane recalls. Shortly after that, Lane received a Gibson Acoustic from John Wayne. The Duke gave it to Shakey Jake, who was Wayne's driver, to give to Lane. "I would try to play along to a Bobby Blue Bland album" Lane states. He also wanted to join in with his dad and all those old cats that stopped by to "drink, tell lies and jam." Lane, however, would not get serious on the guitar until much later. Lane got discouraged from playing after the Gibson got smashed, and didn't play for a while. Upon returning home from the military in 1983, he had a life changing experience. "I was laying on the bed with the headset on, trying to figure out what to do with my life, and that song, "Hey Joe" (the Hendrix version) came on the radio and I heard that song like I've never heard it before". At that time, Jimmy knew exactly what to do. He took his last $59 to a pawnshop, bought a Harmony guitar and learned "Hey Joe" by ear. For the next four years he worked construction and roofing jobs, but would spend every other waking moment playing guitar. He would play along to blues as well as AC/DC and Journey records. By 1987, Lane became lead guitarist of the Jimmy Rogers Band as well as leader of his own band, Jimmy D. Lane and The Hurricanes and later Blue Train Running. Lane toured extensively with his fathers band while managing his own solo career. In 1993, The Jimmy Rogers Band toured Europe, where they made a stop to perform at the BBC. In '94 they performed at the W. C. Handy Awards and in '95 they appeared on the Conan O'Brien show, as well as the Chicago Blues Festival. Jimmy made his solo recording debut in 1995. The self titled disc on Blue Seal Records features 12 fine originals and one of his dad's tunes. In 1993, however, he would meet the people who would put his recording career into high gear. During the sessions for Bluebird for Analogue Productions, with the Jimmy Rogers Band, he met Producer John Koenig and head of Acoustic Sounds, Chad Kassem. Koenig saw the Jimmy D. Lane band at B. B. King's Club in Universal City and was floored. Koenig and Kassem got together and Jimmy recorded Long Gone for Analogue Productions in 1995, at Ocean Way Studios in Los Angeles, which was released in 1997. His second recording, Long Gone, showcases Jimmy’s guitar virtuosity on originals like "Whiskey," "Oh What A Feeling" and the title cut. The Hendrix/Vaughan influence can be heard in his searing guitar solos but listen and you will hear his feet are firmly rooted in the blues. His versions of John Lee Hooker's "Boom Boom" and Jimmy Rogers "I'm in Love" show his deep love for, and respect of blue tradition. Lane can stretch out on his own, but is equally at home in a support mode as can be heard by comparing his playing on Long Gone to Bluebird. Lane plays on and co-produced Hubert Sumlin's I Know You, also on Analogue Productions, where as he states "You can hear Hubert's guitar, not some guy with his amp cranked up." In fact, it was Hubert Sumlin who gave Jimmy his first Strat in 1986. Off stage, Lane's positive outlook on life is reflected in one of his favorite phrases "It's all good." This was originally the title of his third release, but changed it to Legacy in honor of his father's memory and the rich blues heritage he grew up with. Legacy, released in May '98, features guest appearances of blues greats Sam Lay on drums, Carey Bell on harp and Sumlin on guitar. It also features the last recordings of Jimmy Rogers, who played on "One Room Country Shack" and "Another Mule Kickin' In My Stall." Jimmy is proud of all his work with his dad, but this one touches him deeply. "I take great pride in the fact that the last time my dad picked up a guitar was to help me out on my project."Jimmy's fourth release,It's Time, could just as well have been titled It's Overdue. It's long been time for one of today's most powerful and expressive musicians to break the chains of relative commercial obscurity. Time to seize the reins of blues leadership, just as his father, Jimmy Rogers, did in the 1940s. Masters Eddie Kramer (engineer for Hendrix, Zeppelin, Woodstock etc.), Chris "Whipper" Layton and Tommy Shannon (of Double Trouble) and Mike Finnigan (organ in the bands of Etta James, Taj Mahal and CSN&Y) are all onboard to give Jimmy the nudge he needs to clear the launching pad. It's Time. Lane's music is on the rocking side, but is tempered with just the right amount of blues tradition. As Lane states "you can have too much water and too much fire, but with the right amount of both, you can boil an egg." Jimi Hendrix may have moved him to buy a guitar, but Hendrix is just one influence. Lane is a competent blues singer, songwriter and guitarist with a deep respect for "all those original cats who were there".

Doyle Bramhall II (born 24 December 1968) is an American singer and guitarist. Known for his work in Arc Angels, he was also the second guitarist in Eric Clapton's band from 2004 to 2009. He has also played with Susan Tedeschi and toured with Roger Waters, and is the lead guitarist and vocalist in his own Smokestack band

"Welcome" has received mostly favourable reviews. Allmusic.com's Rosalind Cummings-Yeates' review above says that "the majority of the songs veer toward blues, albeit unconvincingly", and "The last cut, "Cry," finally whips up some emotion from Bramhall, but it should have been spread throughout Welcome. Even contemporary blues needs a little grit". In truth, "Welcome" is probably more a rock than a blues album. Doyle, himself said that "Although the blues is one of his favorite genres, he finds that most of his attempts at bluesy songwriting end up sounding "corny," and his songs always tend to have more of a rock feel". Also speaking about "Welcome", Doyle said "Who wants to hear great guitar playing over terrible songs?" The album is full of great funk, rock, soul and blues grooves, and the songs are top notch. Doyle has a very distinctive vocal style. He is a guitarist of enormous skill, and the all-round musicianship on this album is superb. Listen to Doyle Bramhall II's "Jellycream" album and Doyle Bramhall's "Fitchburg Street" album. Arc Angel's s/t album is also terrific, and worth buying [All tracks @ 320 Kbps: File size = 149 Mb]

Doyle Bramhall II (born 24 December 1968) is a guitarist and vocalist in his band Smokestack and is also the second guitarist in Eric Clapton's band. Doyle Bramhall II is a songwriter, guitarist, and vocalist. He was born in Dallas, Texas and is the son of singer, songwriter and drummer Doyle Bramhall, who grew up as a close friend of Stevie Ray Vaughan and Jimmie Vaughan. At age 16, Doyle Bramhall II toured with Jimmie Vaughan's band, The Fabulous Thunderbirds, as second guitarist. Some of Doyle's influences include, Johnny "Guitar" Watson, Donny Hathaway, Freddie King, Albert King, Jimmie Vaughan, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Sly & the Family Stone, Lightnin' Hopkins, and Curtis Mayfield. In 1992 Doyle formed Arc Angels with Charlie Sexton and Stevie Ray Vaughan's rhythm section of bassist Tommy Shannon and drummer Chris Layton (also known as Double Trouble). Doyle and Sexton were only able to work together for one album but it was well received, with several songs receiving heavy rock radio airplay. They went their own ways after the album but have gotten back together and have been playing shows as Arc Angels again in 2006 and 2007. Doyle released his self-titled debut album on the Geffen record label in 1996 with backing support from Wendy and Lisa (Bramhall is married to Wendy's sister, vocalist Susannah Melvoin). In later interviews, he stated his intent with that album to establish himself as more than just a guitar player. The album received praise from reviewers but was received poorly with sales. Bruce Flohr, a former RCA record executive, came to the first live performance Doyle threw after writing a batch of new material for his new album. Flohr was blown away by the performance and immediately wanted to sign Bramhall to his label. Doyle agreed and signed with RCA, and released his second album Jellycream in 1999. He appeared on Austin City Limits in an episode shared with Robert Cray that fall. The record labels at RCA were unhappy at the sales records of the album and withdrew all funds for Doyle's new project. Flohr, who was a fan of Doyle's music and had faith in it, was powerless to prevent the waning financial interests of his label. It was at this time that Doyle phoned Flohr and asked to be cut from his deal with RCA. Still being friends, Flohr passed a copy of the Jellycream album to Eric Clapton. Clapton took an interest in Bramhall's music and included "Marry You" and "I Wanna Be" in a collaborative album he was working on with B.B. King, released in 2000 as Riding With The King. Doyle also formed a new band, "Doyle Bramhall II & Smokestack," and recorded a new album produced by Benmont Tench of Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers fame. Released in 2001, Welcome marked a renewed focus on guitar. Doyle's recording relationship with Clapton continued to flourish, and he co-wrote "Superman Inside" for and played guitar on Eric's 2001 solo album, Reptile. He and Smokestack opened for Clapton on his 2001 world tour, and Doyle occasionally joined Eric on stage. By 2004, he was Clapton's second guitarist after Andy Fairweather-Low backed out of the tour. The 2004 tour was Clapton's effort at channeling his hero Robert Johnson and Doyle later admitted that he had never listened to Robert Johnson until getting the gig as Clapton's second guitarist. Doyle also appears with Eric in the 2004 CD/DVD release Sessions for Robert J. Doyle also played guitar on the 1999-2002 In the Flesh tour (captured on the In the Flesh Live album) by former Pink Floyd leader/bassist Roger Waters. Previous to that, Doyle also played a much lower key role backing his wife Susannah Melvoin's (who also toured with Waters during the In the Flesh tour as a backing singer) twin sister Wendy Melvoin for her band Girl Bros., and more recently with Wendy and Lisa in the groups Pacifico and Funk Sway. Pacifico consisted of Wendy and Lisa, along with Doyle, Mike Elizondo and Abe Laboriel Jr., and several recordings from a small club tour have surfaced. Funk Sway — Erykah Badu, Wendy and Lisa ?uestlove of The Roots, and Doyle, are featured in the music documentary Before the Music Dies.As a session guitarist, he has worked with Me'shell Ndegéocello, Sheryl Crow and Susan Tedeschi. He also toured with Eric Clapton as part of his 2006/2007 world tour along with slide guitarist Derek Trucks and he performed at the 2007 Crossroads Guitar Festival at Chicago's Toyota Park. Of his songwriting, Doyle has said that although the blues is one of his favorite genres, he finds that most of his attempts at bluesy songwriting end up sounding "corny," and his songs always tend to have more of a rock feel. Doyle usually plays the Fender Stratocaster but will occasionally play some Gibson guitars, either playing on left-handed models or right-handed models upside-down. Doyle plays guitar left-handed but his guitars are strung as if to be played by a right-handed player, as was the case with Albert King. In other words, the low E string is at the bottom of his guitar, and the high string at the top. This fact and his unique playing style can be seen clearly in the "In the Flesh: Live" DVD footage.